How does water repel for a split sec?

[u83rn00b]

This has always fasinated me, I am only like a kid so don't hate me!
When u dive into water, as soon as you hit, for a millionith of a second, the surface of the water kind of repels you. It is enough to (from a headdive) break your neck. But after that slight millionth of a second, the water kind of absorbs u.. How is it this happens? can any1 help mee??

 

[Noober]

Surface tension.

 

[cesiumfrog]

I think it's more a question of whether the water can move out of the way quickly enough. If you hit it hard enough, it can't flow around you. If the issue were surface tension, you could remove the effect with detergents.

 

[Mk]

Bing! Bing! Congratulation's cesiumfrog, you win a car!

 

[arunma]

I wouldn't be surprised if surface tension plays some role. But as Cesiumfrog said, it's probably that the water can't flow quickly enough. This is because water, like all liquids, is incompressible, and if it doesn't flow around a solid, it won't give way for that solid by any other means.